XRDS

Crossroads The ACM Magazine for Students

Sign In

Association for Computing Machinery

Magazine: Summer 2025 | Volume 31, No. 4

COLUMN: Letter from the Editor

Securing Our Future

By Denise Doig

HTML | In the Digital Library
Tags: Computing organizations, General literature

COLUMN: User Account

Challenging the Growth Narrative in and Through HCI

By Vishal Sharma, Asra Sakeen Wani, Raphaël Marée, Christoph Becker, Douglas Schuler, Aparajita Marathe, Neha Kumar, Han Qiao, Rikke Hagensby Jensen, Anupriya Tuli

HTML | In the Digital Library
Tags: HCI theory, concepts and models

SECTION: Features

AI-Powered Phishing: The Current Landscape and Future Projections

AI-powered phishing attacks have rapidly evolved, utilizing advanced personalization, multi-channel deception, and deepfake technology to surpass human-crafted scams in both scale and effectiveness. This unprecedented chapter of cybercrime has created never-before-seen challenges for security professionals. Individuals and organizations will need to adopt AI-driven security measures to keep ahead of these AI-driven threats.

By Daniel Aldam

HTML | In the Digital Library
Tags: Computer crime, Natural language processing, Social engineering attacks

Scams at Scale: Unmasking Crypto Fraud and Social Engineering on the Modern Web

From legitimate-looking cryptocurrency investment portals to fake celebrity giveaways, scammers are building sophisticated campaigns that exploit users' trust across the web to deprive them of their life savings. In this article, we unpack how some of these campaigns operate at scale and how researchers can systematically detect, track, and stop them.

By Abisheka Pitumpe, Muhammad Muzammil, Xigao Li, Nick Nikiforakis, Amir Rahmati

HTML | In the Digital Library
Tags: Digital cash, Distributed systems security, Domain-specific security and privacy architectures, Economics of security and privacy, Social engineering attacks

Cyber-Physical Security in Healthcare: Vulnerabilities and Emerging Solutions

The integration of connected medical devices has transformed patient care but has introduced significant cybersecurity vulnerabilities. This article examines key risks in Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) systems and explores emerging solutions for safeguarding patient safety in an increasingly connected healthcare environment.

By Aakar Mutha

HTML | In the Digital Library
Tags: Health care information systems, Human and societal aspects of security and privacy, Malware and its mitigation, Security in hardware, Vulnerability management

Deepfake Technology and the Rise of Misinformation

As the advent of deepfake technology blurs the line between fact and fiction, a sophisticated new threat has been gaining ground in the digital age. How is AI-generated media being weaponized to spread disinformation and influence public perception? And can we still trust what we see online?

By Vamsi Koneti

HTML | In the Digital Library
Tags: Image manipulation, Social aspects of security and privacy

OPEN ACCESS

Can You Trust What AI Hears (and Says)?

Audio-first language models are becoming the next frontier for AI vulnerabilities.

By Jaechul Roh

HTML | In the Digital Library
Tags: Security and privacy, Speech recognition

DMAP: A Blockchain-Enhanced Deepfake Verification Framework to Safeguard Individual Privacy and National Security

While media can be faked, decentralized authentication can restore trust.

By Abdul Waheed, Nicholas S. Reese

HTML | In the Digital Library
Tags: Authentication, Image manipulation, Speech recognition

OPEN ACCESS

A City That Thinks---But Doesn't Overthink

Smart cities expand connectivity---but also vulnerability. Equitable governance and built-in cybersecurity are essential to protecting data, infrastructure, and our civil liberties.

By Hummd Damita Alikhan

HTML | In the Digital Library
Tags: Database and storage security, Embedded systems security, Human and societal aspects of security and privacy